Thermal and moisture comfort

Thermal and moisture comfort of gowns are highly correlated with surgical environment, length of procedure and amount of exposure.37 During surgical procedure, doctors and nurses perform a high stress job under strong lighting causing their body to release heat although the operation is done in controlled atmosphere i.e temp. 15 to 25 0C and R.H 30 to 60 % If internal body heat and moisture can not be dissipated appropriately, heat fatigue will occur which may impair ultimate operation performance. It is seen that a sweating surgeon contaminates the surgical field more than the non-sweating surgeon. Surgeons feels comfortable wearing a single layer disposable gown but protection level is low. Surgeons feels less comfortable wearing a multilayer film reinforced gown but protection level is high. A study shows that only 4 % surgeon felt comfortable with reusable gown and 61 % felt comfortable with disposable single layer gown. Surgeon also felt less comfortable with reinforced gown due to inhibition of vapor evaporation from the skin. Surgeons prefer soft, pliable and more comfortable gown which can maximize balance between protection and moisture dissipation. An ideal gown should prevent liquid penetration but allows excess body heat to be dispersed by means of air and moisture transfer. A complex network of ultrathin polyester and polyamide fibre made gown was found to provide water repellency and moisture transference more efficiently than cotton.